Edward I

Birth of Edward I ~ King of England

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Edward I was born sometime during the night of the 17/18th of June 1239, at the Palace of Westminster.

He was the son of King Henry III and Eleanor of Provence.

His father decided to give him a name which had not been popular amongst the English aristocracy, in honour of Edward the Confessor.

During young Edward’s childhood, poor health was a massive concern.

Despite his poor health, as an adult he reached a rather imposing six foot two inches in height.

This was extremely rare for the time, and earned him the nickname “Longshanks”, meaning “long legs”.

When Edward was fourteen years of age, his father made a political decision, to arrange a marriage between his son and thirteen year old Eleanor of Castile, the half-sister of King Alfonso X of Castile.

On 1st November 1254 in Castile, Edward married Eleanor, a marriage that would end up producing sixteen children!

Unfortunately, only five daughters reached adulthood and one son, Edward II.

Edward I became well-known during his reign for his contributions to reform.

He encompassed medieval kingship in all its forms, serving as an administrator, soldier and a man of religious conviction.

During his reign, many statutes were passed, in order to deal with the many problems that had been identified.

One of the main ones included ‘The First Statute of Westminster’ in 1275 which codified many existing laws from the time of the Magna Carta.

One of Edward I’s greatest legacies, is the birth of the English Parliament.

Under his leadership, the meetings became increasingly frequent, amounting to around forty-six occasions during his thirty-five year reign.

Much of his motivation for developing a form of government in the way that he did, was based on raising the necessary funds, through taxation, in order to wage wars.

Some of these included waring with neighbours across the Channel. France also happened to be a strong ally of Scotland, another thorn in Edward’s side.

The first part of his reign was dominated by his dealings with Wales.

In response to small uprisings occurring in Wales, he decided to take the approach on launching a complete conquest.

He invaded in 1277, defeated Llwelyn ap Gryffyd, the Welsh leader, and subsequently went about building castles, in order to secure and demonstrate his power in the region.

Any signs of uprising were met with further violence, eventually ending Welsh hopes for independence.

The country came under complete English authority and by 1301, Edward’s son was named Prince of Wales, a tradition that persists to this day.

His approach to similar issues of self-governance in Scotland however were not so easy to resolve.

Edward I responded to uprisings across the border, which was met with a hostile response, continuing to cause conflict beyond his reign.

In 1290 Edward was recognised as overlord of Scotland, and at this time made the decision as to who would succeed to the Scottish throne.

He chose John Balliol whom he treated as a puppet ruler.

The Scottish nobility responded by deposing Balliol, and forming an alliance with France.

By 1296, Edward had invaded Scotland, imprisoned Balliol in the Tower of London and put the Scottish people under English rule.

In this period he earned his nickname, ‘Hammer of the Scots’.

In 1290 he found a way to raise revenue.

He issued the 'Edict of Expulsion', a formal expulsion of all Jews from England ~ a decision which would generate much needed revenue by appropriating Jewish property.

Edward I continued to reign until 7th July 1307, when on his way to engage in conflict with Robert the Bruce in Scotland, he died.

He was to be remembered as a bombastic, influential and an imposing figure who made decisions, both good and bad, which shaped the country for years to come.

Edward I's body was brought south, lying in state at Waltham Abbey, before being buried in Westminster Abbey on 27th October

There are few records of the funeral, which cost £473.

Edward's tomb was an unusually plain sarcophagus of Perbeck marble, without the customary royal effigy, possibly the result of the shortage of royal funds.

The Society of Antiquaries of London, opened the tomb in 1774, finding that the body had been well preserved over the preceding 467 years, and took the opportunity to determine the King's original height.

Traces of the Latin inscription~

Edwardus Primus Scottorum Malleus hic est, 1308. Pactum Serva ("Here is Edward I, Hammer of the Scots, 1308. Keep the Troth")

can still be seen painted on the side of the tomb, referring to his vow to avenge the rebellion of Robert Bruce.

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https://www.historic-uk.com/.../HistoryofEngland/Edward-I/

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https://ko-fi.com/thetudorintruders

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Stone sculptures of Edward (left) and Eleanor (right) at Lincoln Cathedral.